The Games we Play

by Sunny Milk

Chapter 3: Trouble in the New World

My consciousness buzzed back to life and I groggily rubbed the tiredness from my sensitive eyes as they adjusted to the light filtering through the window blinds.

Rest Complete. HP and MP are fully restored.

I slipped my bed covers off and sat on the edge of the bed as I stretched my well-rested arms, earning me a few pops.

I'm probably gonna need new clothes soon since I don't have any from back home. I silently lamented. It really was a shame that nothing came with me to Equestria. Then again, without an Inventory, I'd be pretty limited with what I could take with me.

Wait... Inventory! That's it! Why didn't I think of this sooner?!

Facepalming, I experimentally spoke aloud 'Inventory' and much to my satisfaction, a new screen appeared.

On the left was my silhouette overlaid by equipment slots for my torso, head, legs, feet and hands. Furthermore, next to the silhouette five more slots with a ring icon, presumably for accessories.

Then on my right were several Inventory slots, some filled by... my stuff?!

I couldn't believe what I was seeing. Within my Inventory were a few of my shirts, dresses, various undergarments and other pieces of clothing, but that was a drop in the bucket compared to the pleasant surprise that came next.

My laptop. My laptop was here.

If it wasn't for the fact that I had just woken up, I'd probably be running around the room in excitement. I couldn't help but feel elated that I had something to remember home by, even if I wasn't all that attached to it.

I reach out for it with a shaky hand, and a second text box appears.

Laptop(Uncommon)
A middle-of-the-road Laptop owned by Aria Lee. It is currently fully charged(100%).

Fully Charged? Surely that can't be right, I know for a fact that I forgot to put it on charge that night. Don't tell me... does it charge while it's in my Inventory or something?

That seems to be the case, Aria.

I jumped at the sudden appearance of Stele's voice. After a moment of trying to get my heart rate to go down, I greet my comrade accordingly.
Good Morning to you too, you ass.
All that I got out of her was a giggle in response. I sigh, not engaging in any further mind antics.

"Right, I guess I should go see if anyone else is awake, it should be morning now," I spoke, not to anyone in particular.

---

"...That's because it would get really awkward for me very fast if I didn't wear clothes!" I retorted, attempting to hide a quickly forming blush.

Turns out, both Twilight and Spike had already been awake for roughly half an hour and Spike was in the middle of making breakfast as I stumbled downstairs. Once Spike was finished with our pancakes, we began eating at the table while engaging in friendly talk. That was when the topic of me always wearing clothes came up.

"...What are you hiding, huh?" He narrowed his eyes, pointing an accusatory claw at me before we both broke out in a fit of giggles. Twilight just facepalmed (facehoofed?), at our antics.

"So, what's the plan for today, Twilight? Gonna teach me some magic?" I asked, not caring that half my mouth was filled with Spike's heavenly pancakes. Seriously, the little guy can cook.

"Let's see," - A clipboard stuck in her telekinetic grip floated in front of her. - "We should have enough time to practice for 1 hour, but after that, I need to pick up some supplies in town. How does starting once you finish your breakfast sound?"

"Don't you need to finish yours fir- oh." She had already finished her food. With haste, I sheepishly finish my own stack of pancakes and enter the Library's "main" area. Despite how little time it took me to eat, Twilight had prepared a blackboard and had already drawn several diagrams depicting Magic Theory. She noticed my arrival that beckoned me to sit down with her, and as I entered the room proper I noticed Spike, sprawled out on a bean bag reading some kind of book that I couldn't make out the title of.

I'll just ask about it later.

"What I'm going to teach you might be basic but don't worry if you don't understand it the first time around, after this lesson is over you should be able to find some more material on Magic Theory here in the library. Are you ready?" I nodded, preparing myself to absorb as much as I could.

"Mana is a force that permeates all of Equus, and through all living things. Magic is the practice of manipulating our own latent Mana to produce unique effects, which are what we call spells. We Unicorns channel Mana through our horns to cast our magic. Although we're one of the few races on Equus who can manipulate Mana freely, all creatures possess magic in some form. Our latent Mana is generated by something called a Magic Core and this Mana circulates around the insides of our bodies through points called Magic Circuits, similarly to how we circulate blood," Twilight recites matter-of-factly as if she's done this many times before. "Any questions so far?"

"Could you go into a bit more depth about Magic Cores and Magic Circuits?" I asked.

"Of course!" She obliged. "Magic Cores are magical constructs inside of us that generate Mana and along with Magic Circuits, make up the Mana Circulatory System. Magic Circuits are points in the body where Mana flows through and accumulates. For Unicorns, Magic Circuits assist in controlling and manipulating our Mana, and the majority of them develop around our horns. Although I'm not sure yet, I think your body works similarly given how easily you cast that spell yesterday." She warmly smiled at me.

"Speaking of, would you like to try learning how to control your Mana properly? We should have some time before I need to get supplies."

I nodded enthusiastically, earning a chuckle from her.

"Alright, first things first! Close your eyes, and focus. You've used magic before so you should have some idea of where your Magic Core is, all you need to do is find it and let your Mana flow wherever it naturally wants to go."

I did as I was told, closing my eyes and focusing on that feeling from yesterday. The outside world ceases to exist for me, as I focus intensely for minutes on end, and eventually, I feel... something inside of my chest. I couldn't describe what it was in words, all that I knew was that it was undeniably me, an extension of my very being. I focused on it, my Magic Core and let its power flood my body. I could feel raw Mana permeate throughout my entire body, my limbs tingling from the feeling of Mana gathering in them. I opened my eyes and looked at my arms, covered by an aura of red Mana.

My Mana.

Two new Skills have been created via a special action.
Magic Aura (Active) (Base 10MP/Min) (Level 1) (6.27%)
Your Mana is covering your body, bolstering your physical capabilities both defensively and offensively. This scales directly with how much Mana you decide to cover your body with.

Mana Manipulation (Passive) (Level MAX)
Through training, you have learnt how to control your own Mana, both in and outside of your body, allowing you to create and use more refined Magic.
+5 INT
+5 WIS
-10% Spell Costs.

My entire body was enveloped by a thin aura of red mana. I could feel its protective glow strengthening me, a wonderful feeling unparalleled by anything I had felt before.

I swing my Mana-cloaked fist experimentally through the air, red streaking in its wake, and as I suspected, it barely felt like there was any resistance! I then turn to Twilight, my self-discovery eliciting astonishment in her magenta eyes.

"W-Wow! You did it on your first try, that's pretty impressive. I've lost count of how many tries it took me to first channel Mana as a filly." Her words of gratitude scored her an embarrassed sway of my head, my long hair trailing along as my field of Mana faded as I broke concentration. An act which amused her, as she stifled a giggle with a hoof.

"That being said, we're out of time," she warned, eyeing the clock. "While I and Spike run our errands, there's something I'd like you to do!"

---

I stared at the paper map Twilight gave me, a puzzled look on my face.

Are you sure this is the right way? I think we took a wrong turn.

I'm positive the Schoolhouse was near here, we just need to walk a little further up and we should be able to see it and ask Miss Cheerilee when she wants to take her class to the library.

As Twilight was the new librarian in town, all matters about The Golden Oak Library were to go through her, including trips to said library by school classes. I was tasked with asking what day of the week Cheerilee would like to use for her class, I even got a Quest for it.

A New Quest has been Generated.
Informer of the Library.
Twilight wants you to ask Miss Cheerilee, Ponyville's sole Teacher when she, and her class, would like to use the library.

Completion Rewards: +30.00% EXP, Twilight Sparkle will see you as reliable(+Reputation with Twilight Sparkle), 30 Bits.

Failure: No EXP, Twilight Sparkle will not see you as reliable(-Reputation with Twilight Sparkle)

Lo and behold, after just a little bit more walking, Ponyville Schoolhouse came into view. Just as it rolled into sight, the distant sound of shattering glass, followed by a panicked scream set me into overdrive. In reaction, I activated Magic Aura at a level that easily consumed 50MP a minute as a broke into a sprint, careful not to fall over due to my massively increased running speed because of Magic Aura. I cover a distance of nearly 300 meters in half a minute as I swiftly approach the doors to the schoolhouse, slamming the doors open as I reach them.

In front of me stood 3... Wooden Contructs ? 2 of those things were clawing at a door down the hallway, (which at the end there was a shattered window, likely how the intruders entered), As for the other one...

I yelp in surprise as the wooden amalgam leaps up at me, fangs bared. I reflectively smash the wooden beast with a Mana-cloaked first into the ground, before following up with a powerful kick to its abdomen strong enough to send it flying several meters, directly at the other two who had by now noticed my presence.

-72! -144!
"Observe."

Name:Timberwolf Grunt
Race:Timberwolf
Level:8
HP:124/340
MP:60
STR:20
VIT:34
DEX:15
INT:6
WIS:5
LUK:9

You need to finish them off before they recover!

"Agreed! Using a beam would be too destructive for a building so..." Concentrating my Mana in my hands I form a ball of red Mana, and hurl the ball of destruction directly at the recently launched "Timberwolf", before launching another and breaking into a sprint, ready to finish off the other two wolves.

-46! -40!

My two balls of Mana strike true and completely deplete the Timberwolf of its HP, netting something very important.

Level Up.
Level 3 -> Level 4
HP: 123/123(12HP/Min) -> 123/144(14HP/Min)
MP: 208/283(24MP/Min) -> 304(26MP/Min)
STR:12 -> 14
VIT:12 -> 14
DEX:17 -> 19
INT: 28 -> 30
WIS: 24 -> 26
LUK: 10 -> 10
+ 5 Attribute Points
Ignoring this screen, for now, I continue to rush down the other two Timberwolves. One of them finally recovers from their prone stance and meets me halfway, going for the throat just like the last. In response, I pull my arm back and pivot in an attempt to put as much kinetic force into my blow as possible.

428! Critical!

My fist barrels through the Timberwolf's fragile body and as it dies instantly, its remains practically explode all around the hallway. The final Timberwolf recovers before I can react, and scores a clean bite on my leg.

-38

I hiss in pain and reflexively kick it off of me with my free leg, dislodging its iron grip.

I glare the Timberwolf down.

The Timberwolf glares back.

Then, we both act.

The Timberwolf zig-zags during its approach in an attempt to throw me off but I easily track its movements and catch it in the air as it practically throws itself at me. Before it could do any damage to me, I pivot my entire body and slam it into the ground that was once behind me, the sound of breaking twigs echoing.

-24

With weary breath, I follow up my impromptu throw with a flurry of stomps to the cranium until it finally runs out of HP.

Due to proving your prowess in combat for the first time, you have unlocked several new skills!

Unarmed Combat Mastery (Passive) (Level 1) (43.2%)
Unarmed Combat Mastery is your ability to fight using just your body.
Boosts all unarmed damage by 1%
Boosts chance of unarmed critical damage by 1%

Mana Ball (Active) (Base 10MP) (Level 1) (12.43%)
A simple technique that condenses Mana into a ball that can be thrown/fired. Due to the simplicity of such a technique, its effects can be heavily modified should the user have to skill and knowledge to do so.

Wild Throw (Active) (Level 1) (21.62%)
This skill requires no resources for activation.
A type of throw where the user pivots their entire body to throw their opponent into the ground.
30% to stun for 5 seconds if the opponent is within 1.5x that of the user.

Magic Aura (Level 1) (6.27%) -> Magic Aura (Level 2) (23.12%)

Magic Aura will now consume 1% less MP/Min.

I'll review all of this later, for now, let's just let the ponies know their safe now.

Ignoring the remains of the 3 grunts, I deactivate Magic Aura and hastily make my way over to the door with the scratch marks. I could hear someone talking on the other side, but it was too muffled to hear anything of value. With no other reasonable option other than knocking, I lightly rap on the door and announce my presence.

"It's safe to come out now! I took care of the Timberwolves!" I called out, making sure I would be loud enough to hear through the door. After waiting a few moments the door finally swung open, and standing in the doorway was my goal, Miss Cheerilee. Her mane has definitely seen better days, as it was rather frazzled with loose hairs sticking out like sore thumbs.

We began an impromptu staring contest as she took in my form. Eager to break the silence, I decide to crack a joke.

"Damn, I didn't realise teaching was such a stressful job, you look pretty bad." I offered with a half-grin. I watched for a few seconds as the cogs in her brain finally started running again, to which she countered with, "You have no idea... Aria was it?" We shared a good laugh with each other as I confirmed my name before I told her my business here.

"To cut this short, Twilight, the new town librarian sent me to ask what day you want your class to come down to the library. Though given... Whatever you want to call this," -I gestured towards the broken window down the hall- "I'm willing to bet that you probably want to call it for a day and sent your students home. There's no guarantee there won't be more of those things." She looks at me with a downtrodden expression, before conceding my point. "I'll keep watch while you evacuate your students, I'd recommend that you find somewhere else to teach temporarily while someone can make sure the schoolhouse is safe." She gives me an understanding nod as I walk back outside the building to watch the perimeter.

Around 10 minutes pass and Miss Cheerilee finishes vacating the building of foals and ushers me to walk with them on the way back to Ponyville, and also informs me that she'd like to use Tuesday as Library Day. With not much else to do while we walk back, and the students wrapped up in their own conversations, I decide to grind Observe to see if I could level it up further.

"Observe."

Name: Sweetie Belle
Class:None
Title: Sister to Generosity
Race:Unicorn
Level:3 (12.53%)
HP:93 ((VIT x 10) + Level) (12HP/Min)
MP:733 (((INT x 10) + Level) + 500)(18MP/Min)
STR:7
VIT:9
DEX:10
INT:23
WIS:18
LUK:5
Skills: Unicorn(Passive) Level MAX
Your arcane birthright as a Unicorn grants you above-average ability in commanding the forces of the arcane.
+10% Spell Damage
-10% Spell Cost
+500 MP
+10 INT
+10 WIS
Gaining Attribute Points related to Spell Casting is easier for you.

Sister to Generosity? I wonder what that means?

"Observe."

Name:Silver Streak
Class:Novice Eletromancer
Title:Tiny Spark
Race:Unicorn
Level:4 (42.72%)
HP:124((VIT x 10) + Level) (12HP/Min)
MP:774((INT x 10) + Level)(20MP/Min)
STR:10
VIT:12
DEX:10
INT:27
WIS:20
LUK:7
Skills: Unicorn(Passive) Level MAX
Your arcane birthright as a Unicorn grants you above-average ability in commanding the forces of the arcane.
+10% Spell Damage
-10% Spell Cost
+500 MP
+10 INT
+10 WIS
Gaining Attribute Points related to Spell Casting is easier for you.
Cutie Mark: Electrokinesis.
+50% EXP to Any Lightning-based Magic
Acutely able to sense the location of electrical objects within 10 Meters.

Definitely keeping an eye on that... Colt? Stallion?

It was hard to tell just how old Silver Streak was. In fact, all the other students also seemed to be like this, older than foals but, not old enough to be adults either. Maybe they were teens like I was?

"E-Excuse me, did you really b-beat up those Timberwolves?" A young, squeaky voice calls out to me. It takes me a moment to realise that he was addressing me, as I was preoccupied with reading the Status of various ponies.

"Oh- yeah, that was me. They went down pretty quickly too!" I bragged. Could you blame me for bragging a little? I did just win that fight pretty easily. The colt, -who I just realised was named Pipsqueak- seems to be pretty amazed by my accomplishment, seems like Timberwolves are considered pretty tough here.

"Hmpf! That's not impressive, anypony could do that!" A pony with a pink coat and light purple mane with white highlights by the name of "Diamond Tiara" interjected, taunting me.

"She's right, you're nothing special." Another pony, who I assume is Diamond Tiara's friend, joined in the mockery, flicking her grey muzzle along with her mane, up in disgust.

So it looks like we have two rich assholes who don't have anything better to do with their time. Man, I wonder where I've seen that before?

I turn and glare at Diamond, my Mana flaring up wildly in response to my swelling hostility.

"If that's really the case, then why didn't your lazy ass do anything? No need to embarrass yourself coming up with some half-baked excuse, I've wasted enough time even responding to your sorry ass," -I jab an accusatory finger at her- "if there's any kind of person I hate the most it's people like you, who only serve to make everyone else's lives worse." I lectured in an even tone, my anger carefully masked. A few of the other ponies who had overheard our conversation seemed to agree with my sentiment, some saying things like "You tell her!", "She's right you know!", and other such statements of approval. My anger quickly fades and my Mana calms and retracts into my body, now replaced by my now growing confidence as the ponies around me cheer me on.

Clearly overwhelmed, the two partners in crime struggle to come up with a rebuttal. Diamond Tiara grits her teeth in rage before her expression twists into a resentful smirk as Silver Streak breaks through the growing crowd. Many of the voices supporting me die down as he approaches. He moves to stand between us, hoof striking the ground, nostrils flared.

"How DARE YOU speak to my Diamond like that?! How about I teach you a lesson, huh?" He lowers his horn, along with his entire body as if ready to strike me down.

"Silver Streak. Are you really sure you want to fight me? Considering that I'm no less than 5 meters away from you, there's no way you could even hit me with a spell before I can reach you, you're at a disadvantage." I warned. I didn't really care either way, but it would likely save me some trouble not getting into fights with strangers.

"Really? Let's test that theory then! Take this!" He challenges, grey mana flowing through his horn as he charges some kind of spell. About a second and a half into the charging of the spell, little sparks of electricity spike out of his horn. As soon as I see this, I immediately activate Magic Aura at a rate of 70MP/Min, more than enough to protect me. He fires the spell, and a sphere of solid electricity flies at me. With a bored expression on my face, I bat away the ball off to the side as it impacts the ground. I hold in a pained grunt as I feel a light burn over my hand.

-7

He double takes, dumbfounded that I deflected his spell so easily. "Do you understand now? It's pointless, you can't hurt me." I lecture, just wanting this to be over. Before any of us could say anything else, Miss Cheerilee makes herself known.

"And what do you think you're doing, you two?" We both flinch, and she sternly glares at both of us, clearly not happy with the way we acted. I'm the first to recover and deactivate Magic Aura.
"It's nothing to worry about, just a little Misunderstanding." I assured, hoping she'd pick up on the fact that I didn't want to press the issue further. She seems to accept this, although begrudgingly so. I clear my throat, grabbing her attention.

"If you wouldn't mind, I think I'll take my leave now. We're close enough to the town proper to be safe anyhow." I inform.

"I... Alright. Just one thing, once we confirm the schoolhouse is safe again would you like to study there with us?" She invites, with a friendly smile. "I'll think about it, thanks for the offer. I'll see you soon, I guess." I hold my hand up to the sky, focusing power into my hands as I make use of I.D Create, making an empty Illusion Barrier.

I think I'd like to walk back to the Library on my own.

---

Quest Complete.
Level 4 -> 5
HP: 137/144HP(14HP/Min) -> 137/165(16HP/Min)
MP: 245/304(26MP/Min) -> 245/325(28MP/Min)
STR:14 -> 16
VIT:14 -> 16
DEX:19 -> 21
INT: 30 -> 32
WIS: 26 -> 28
LUK: 10 -> 11
+ 5 Attribute Points, 10 Total.

Author's Note:

Hey guys. I hope you enjoyed this next chapter in the story I'm weaving!

So, this is actually the first time I've ever written a fight scene before, I hope you enjoyed the little bits of action, I plan on having fights be pretty common, especially since Aria will be tackling Instant Dungeons soon.

Anyway, you may have noticed that I've aged up the school cast. This is one of many changes I'll be making to the canon. I'll be introducing a new mechanic to the way Mana interacts with life in this Universe.

Another thing, I'd like to see what kind of questions you guys would ask Aria, I'll pick out some that I like and have her answer them in the author's note next chapter.

Again, I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Sunny, out.

Comments

[Sunny Milk]

Fun Fact about Silver Streak!
He's kind of an amalgamation of two of my original characters, one of which might be making an appearance during arc one.

Also, we definitely will be seeing more of Silver Streak in the future, just you guys wait.

[AmlpfanREADER]

This chapter was great!